This invention relates to means for feeding components in succession.
A very large number of articles, particularly electronic components, are processed automatically for various purposes. Frequently, as in the disclosure of the above-cited application, they must be fed in succession and in uniform orientation to an operating locality wherein they may be inserted into a wiring board, simply tested, or otherwise dealt with. There is, of course, little point to providing highly automatic, expensive equipment for such purposes if the components to be processed are not delivered in proper predetermined position and at the reliable rate required.
It is a well known technique to employ, in conjunction with raceways or feeding channels, an escapement device essentially comprising a pair of actuatable plunger-like elements, one for detaining a next-to-endmost article in the raceway as the endmost article is released by the second element, and then shifting the second element into holding position in the raceway as the first element is retracted from its holding position. Such an arrangement may work well when the articles to be fed are invariably uniform and regular in configuration.
In the cited Woodman disclosure, in addition to providing an escapement of that general type, a side of a component delivering channel was made adjustable better to accommodate sliding and prevent overlap of adjacent components even though one or more happened to be non-uniform or have a protuberance. While that arrangement (and optional use of take-up leaf springs) works reasonably well, it is found that some adverse skewing and "hang-ups" may still occur due, for instance, to interaction between the next-to-endmost and the third-from-bottom articles. This arises seemingly by reason of a wedging of their abutting end formations, notably when the confronting faces of stacked components include a ridge such as results from flashings on molded bodies of the components. Usage of the conventional plunger type escapement means generally will not overcome the problem. Since large numbers of molded component bodies are processed, and elimination of flashing (as for example commonly encountered on DIP's entails a premium in the component unit price, a better solution to reliable feeding of such components is important to attain.